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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5

TRADITION Swan Songs: December graduates reflect on their time with The Battalion and at A&M. A2

@THEBATTONLINE

SPORTS Aggies prepare for second NCAA Tournament under coach Jamie Morrison. B1

PUBLICATION NOTICE The Battalion

This is the last newspaper of 2024. Publication will continue online, and printing will resume on Jan. 10, 2025.

Search committee to interview top commandant candidates Next Corps of Cadets commandant should defend A&M traditions, Welsh said By Nicholas Gutteridge Managing Editor Texas A&M will soon begin interviewing applicants for Corps of Cadets commandant, President Mark A. Welsh III said during a press conference in the Memorial Student Center marking his anniversary in the permanent position. Applications for the Corps’ highest position closed on Nov. 12. The search committee, led by Welsh’s chief of staff, Susan Ballabina, is currently selecting top candidates for first-round interviews. “The Corps — in my mind, it

is this noble, elite organization that should always be at the center of Texas A&M because of its tie to the heritage and the legacy of this university,” Welsh said. “Hiring a new commandant is really critically important to us.” The search committee hopes to have finalists on campus by the end of January to “expose them to many different groups” and “give people the opportunity to make input on the final selection,” Welsh said. Lt. Gen. Loyd S. “Chip” Utterback has served as interim commandant since Welsh directed the previous leader, Patrick Michaelis,

to step down in August for unstated reasons. “There were just some things happening that made it very clear that it was time for a change,” Welsh said during a sit-down interview with The Battalion on Thursday, Nov. 21. “I think there are a number of constituencies that believe that. Patrick knows why he was asked to step down. Let me say this: I have a lot of respect for Patrick Michaelis. He worked hard in his job, and it’s a very difficult job.” CANDIDATES ON A3

Trinity Hindman — THE BATTALION

Cadets in the Corps of Cadets yell during Texas A&M’s game against New Mexico State at Kyle Field on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024.

Game day, the Rev way

Meet the folks behind Reveille X’s routine By Theresa Lozano Life & Arts Editor As hundreds of thousands cheer the moment Aggieland’s queen is displayed on the jumbotrons at a Texas A&M game, a tradition lounges on the sidelines to watch her Aggies. Seen as a distant blob or vague outline of fluff from most fans packing Kyle Field, Reveille X’s details of constant care are more than just meets the eye. Her pristine maintenance is supported by several moving parts — both Aggies and not. Pampering the queen Once an A&M student herself, Hayley Tilson, Class of 2017, has found herself in a full-circle moment. Working at a dog grooming service during college, she began her journey grooming Reveille IX, branching off after graduation to become the owner-operator of Dizzy Dazee Dog Grooming — but her dream was to have Reveille back. After Reveille’s former groomers shut down following COVID-19, it became a matter of knowing the right people to rekindle the old partnership. “My coworker is neighbors with people that are really active with the Corps, and so it was when Batie [Bishop] was the handler,” Tilson said. “And so they sent Reveille to us, and she doesn’t do big dogs — and I was like, ‘Look, I used to groom her. I know what I’m doing. Sign me up.’” Reveille X now comes in every two weeks and Reveille IX every four, with scheduling attempts to get them to come in together whenever they overlap.

Adriano Espinosa — THE BATTALION

Reveille X sleeps beside her longhorn toy in her handlers’ dorm room on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024.

REVEILLE ON A3

A&M drafting NIL law changes, Welsh says Texas’ name, image, likeness legislation to be affected by class action lawsuit By Nicholas Gutteridge Managing Editor The outcome of a national class action lawsuit is set to reshape Texas’ NIL law that prevents universities from paying athletes for use of their name, image or likeness, Texas A&M President Mark A. Welsh III said during a press conference. Passed in 2021, the state law excluded universities when allowing student-athletes to profit from their NIL. But a preliminary settlement in House v. NCAA, a national class action lawsuit, allows Division 1 universities — including A&M —

to use roughly $20 million toward NIL agreements with student-athletes. It would also see $2.75 billion distributed to various athletes who played for universities from as far back as 2016 to July 2021, when the NCAA first allowed athletes to earn money for their NIL. While the settlement isn’t expected to be finalized until next spring, universities in Texas have taken notice, including A&M. Particularly, Welsh said current state law must be adjusted for A&M to fully comply with the settlement. “We have been talking to the legislature about this,” Welsh said.

“We do have draft language as well that we will propose, but we’re holding off until we know where we stand getting a little bit closer to the settlement date to make sure there’s not some other changes that need to be incorporated into this draft language.” During a press conference at the Texas-A&M Lone Star Showdown, Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey said the conference plans to work with schools whose laws conflict with conference policies and the House settlement. NIL ON A3

Hannah Harrison — THE BATTALION

President Mark A. Welsh III gives his address during the presidential investiture in Rudder Auditorium on Friday, Oct. 25, 2024.

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